Zong Shou's expression froze, then he clicked his tongue with an audible "tsk tsk." "This pawnshop truly struck gold!"

Chu Xue nodded in agreement, sensing the truth in his words. The forging of a Spirit Sword was infinitely more difficult than a Talisman Sword, often requiring extremely rare materials.

Even the poorest Spirit Armament cost more than ten times the price of the 'Thunder Fang Sword' currently in Zong Shou's hand, and often couldn't be bought even with money—as was the case for them now.

One hundred third-tier Beast Cores for a Spirit Armament—this was an incredibly lucrative deal.

After this brief reflection, the Thunder Fang Sword, which had moments ago brought him such surprise, suddenly felt somewhat useless in his grip.

Yin Yang had sought out a high-grade Talisman Sword because, in his past life, he had mastered a secret method for nurturing and sustaining swords, coupled with a unique Sword Cleansing Art. With the enhancement provided by Little Gold, a Talisman Armament could gain partial capabilities of a Spirit Armament.

He hadn't expected such a delightful surprise within Cloud Saint City.

Tucking the newly acquired sword onto his hip, Zong Shou's eyes flickered. After only a moment of contemplation, he decisively declared, "Forget it, this place is dull. Let's go out onto the streets and look around!"

Chu Xue blinked in surprise but offered no objection.

She knew that with Zong Shou's current capabilities, as long as they remained within Cloud Saint City, no one could harm him.

Having reached the Spirit Nurturing Realm, he could slay Innate Martial Masters. Now that he could travel freely at night in his spirit form, he had even less to fear.

The location where the pawnshop auctioned its items was a teahouse situated by the river in the western part of the city.

Compared to later eras, specialized auction houses were not yet common. The practice then was to stockpile enough goods, then send invitations to the city's wealthy gentry and powerful figures to gather for a sale.

However, before heading to the auction, Zong Shou made a stop at the armory where he had commissioned custom Talisman Blades. The fifty Cloud Pattern Talisman Blades were not yet finished.

But he hadn't come for the blades this time. Instead, he sketched out some scattered spare parts and placed a new order.

These were also exoskeletons, but different from the previous Wind Striding Spirit Bone. The latter required only a slight infusion of soul power to activate and was only suitable for movement, allowing him to walk for days and nights if his energy permitted. Its drawback was its inability to be used for combat, and its inherent durability was also not very high.

What Zong Shou was ordering now was an exoskeleton that could be called 'entry-level.' Not only would it be resistant to damage, but it could also increase his strength by nearly five thousand jin. Naturally, the soul power required was over ten times that of the previous model.

Recalling how the Wind Striding Spirit Bone had failed him halfway through previously, Zong Shou ordered a full two sets this time, along with some crucial spare parts for replacement.

Forging these wasn't inherently difficult, comparable to refining mid-tier Talisman Armaments. The delivery date was set for the same day as the Talisman Blades.

When Zong Shou finally arrived at the teahouse, he found it to be quite exquisite, situated by the riverside, lending it an air of refined elegance.

Yet, around the teahouse, squads of heavily armored soldiers stood guard—hulking men who were Martial Masters above the Fourth Tier, radiating palpable killing intent.

He could faintly sense the aura of over a dozen Innate Experts lingering in the vicinity, which was quite unexpected.

Zong Shou felt a flicker of confusion. Was such a grand setup truly necessary just for one Spirit Armament? Or was there another major item being auctioned today?

Uncertain but undeterred, he stepped inside the teahouse. Dressed in noble attire, the guards made no move to stop him.

Inside, the hall was already packed. However, Yin Yang had secured a private box on the second floor.

It was unclear if this was because the pawnshop recognized their standing, or perhaps due to the influence of the Cloud Saint City Lord.

When they met, Yin Yang frowned, his face etched with worry. "Though we are within the city, it remains a place where dragons and fish mix. No matter how thorough the protection offered by Cloud Saint City, oversights are inevitable. How could the Young Master risk coming here?"

Zong Shou glanced at Chu Xue, who was sheepishly scratching her cheek, making it clear the girl hadn't informed Yin Yang of his current situation.

As for the Cloud Saint City Lord, Zong Shou had already discerned that the ruler had no intention of establishing any real connection with him. For a City Lord not to be present in the city for several consecutive days—how could that be?

It was likely that the City Lord was only offering him courtesy out of deference to Lei Dong.

Since the person in power clearly didn't wish to meet, Zong Shou had no intention of shamelessly imposing himself. This current arrangement was ideal.

This location, being crowded and noisy, wasn't suitable for explaining things to Yin Yang. Zong Shou chuckled, rubbed the bridge of his nose, and fell silent, heading directly to the private box to take his seat.

With windows on two sides, one offered a clear view down into the main hall. However, just as Zong Shou sat down, he noticed a questioning gaze fixed upon him from across the way.

Zong Shou was equally stunned. Standing in the corridor just outside the window was a figure—none other than Zong Ling.

The gaze held only a brief moment of surprise before shifting to one of amusement. "Cousin, you actually have the mood to watch the spectacle here at this hour. It seems your stay in Cloud Saint City these past few days has been quite enjoyable."

Feng Xiao was beside him but remained silent, his expression grave as he stared at Yin Yang, who had clearly reached the Innate Realm, his features constantly shifting.

Zong Shou sighed internally. Why were these two like sticky dog skin plasters? They showed up wherever he went—

Then, a cold sneer echoed from across the way. "Do you truly believe this petty Cloud Saint City Lord can shield you? The Eastern Cloud Continent is filled with countless powerful figures. Even in the eastern reaches of this continent, there are four factions stronger than Cloud Saint City. Plenty of people could deal with him. Did you know that the Purple Thunder Spear under our Seventh Brother, Zong Yang, has already arrived here personally?"

As Zong Ling spoke, his gaze drifted to another section. Zong Shou followed his line of sight and saw a figure clad in golden brocade seated in another private box. His back was ramrod straight, like a javelin, his posture so impeccable that not a single flaw could be found.

He appeared to be around twenty, possessing the inherent handsomeness of the Celestial Fox lineage, yet his expression was utterly cold and severe. Beside him lay a spear, wrapped in cloth.

He cast a faint glance at Zong Shou before withdrawing his eyes, as if utterly uninterested.

Although two Innate Martial Masters flanked him, they were overshadowed by this individual's imposing aura, almost making them unnoticeable.

Zong Shou's brow twitched. Having assimilated the memories of the past thirteen years, he had a vague understanding of the situation in Dry Heaven Mountain.

He did recall this person. Reportedly, he was also a member of the Zong Clan of the Celestial Fox lineage, the most outstanding among the collateral disciples of this generation.

He had been recruited by Zong Yang's branch of the clan and was fiercely loyal to them. In the past, Zong Weiran had deeply regretted this, having once personally declared him a prodigy in front of 'him,' lamenting that he couldn't utilize such talent and, being from a collateral line, his fate was sealed to be merely a pawn for others despite having talent comparable to the main lineage.

"The momentum of the Martial Path? Indeed impressive!"

Squinting, Zong Shou had a rough estimation of this man's strength within an instant. He should be at the peak of the Innate Martial Master stage—the Earth Meridian Third Pulse.

However, what concerned him more was that the appearance of the 'Purple Thunder Spear' here most likely signaled a shift in the overall situation at Dry Heaven Mountain.

In the next moment, Zong Ling let out another cold huff, "However, Cousin, you truly are lucky—"